


Marked by the Sun

by Nightworldlove



Series: Janaya week 2020 [5]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: ASL, AU, Day 5;Tattoo, Deaf Character, F/F, Flirting, Janaya Week, Janaya Week 2020, Modern AU, Sign Language, Tattoo, Tattoo AU, semi-modern au, wlw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-01-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:54:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22366741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightworldlove/pseuds/Nightworldlove
Summary: Janaya week 2020 - Day 5; TattooAmaya has a tattoo shop, mornings are always slow, but then this beautiful woman walks in...
Relationships: Amaya/Janai (The Dragon Prince)
Series: Janaya week 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1605796
Comments: 10
Kudos: 89
Collections: Tattoo





	Marked by the Sun

**Author's Note:**

> Day five is heeeeeeeereeeeeeeeee! My goodness, everyone; I am so, so, SO happy I can finally post this and share this with you all! This one was the first one I actually finished writing for Janaya week and so far also the longest one.
> 
> Huge thanks to Solitae for proofreading and dealing with my ramblings :'D
> 
> Please do let me know what you think? Would really mean a lot to me, honestly!
> 
> Enjoy! o3o

**Marked by the Sun**

_23.01.2020_

* * *

The shop had just been opened, so there was probably not going to be anyone coming in for a while. Most mornings were spent tidying up the place, checking on inventory, if necessary order new supplies and work on some designs. Luckily she wasn’t alone and could have both Gren and Callum share the chores with her. 

“Good morning, aunt Amaya, Gren,” Callum greeted both her and Gren as he walked in from the back. 

_‘You’re late.’_ Amaya gave the apprentice, who was also her nephew, a stern look. _‘Good morning, Callum. Did you eat?’_ She managed to hold back a chuckle as Callum’s nervous expression faded, and smiled when he nodded. _‘Good, then let’s get to work. Can you check if we need to order any supplies?’_

“ _I think so, yeah._ ” Callum put away his sketchbook behind the counter and walked to the back again, getting right to work.

_‘Anything you want me to do this morning?’_ Gren asked her and chuckled when Amaya told him to get them all some coffee. _‘Did the coffee machine get repaired?’_ He asked, to which his boss sighed and shook her head. _‘No worries, I’ll get it from the coffee place down the street.’_

_‘Thanks, Gren. Have an extra shot added to mine, please,’_ Amaya signed and handed the ginger enough money for all of their drinks. _‘Oh and get some of their pastries, you know which ones,’_ she added.

As Gren walked out of the shop, Amaya prepared the work stations for whenever customers would come in. all of them were cleaned with anti-bacterial cleaner, the little trolley’s drawers filled up with disinfectant wipes, sealed needles, paper towels and ink. 

The smell of coffee caused the brunette to turn around with a big smile, facing Gren. She walked over to him and took the bag with pastries and the cup with her name on it, nodding at him gratefully. The coffee smelled as strong as it hopefully would taste, when she took a sip from it, she concluded it was perfect. She walked to the space behind the counter and set her coffee and the bag of pastries down on the desk that also served as a table. Right when Gren returned from the back, she let herself fall onto the stool and took another sip of her coffee, after taking off the unnecessary lid. 

Gren sat down across from her and took the lid off his cup as well, then poured a large amount of coffee cream and sugar into it. Amaya scowled and shook her head, she honestly still wondered why the ginger didn’t just order hot milk with a small amount of coffee instead.

_‘I finished checking the inventory, here is the list.’_ Callum handed Amaya the list of the inventory and what needed to be ordered. She quickly scanned over the list and smiled, her nephew had even checked the medical supplies. 

_‘Thanks Callum,’_ Amaya signed and gestured for him to sit down. _‘Gren got you hot chocolate_ and _we got pastries.’_ Amaya grinned when she saw the excited look on Callum’s face, the boy was pretty easy to please. 

“Thanks Gren,” Callum thanked him and sat down next to Gren. 

“She paid, I just picked it up for us.” Gren was now stirring his coffee with a spoon and made some small talk with Callum. 

_‘So…’_ Amaya started when she finished her coffee and set her cup to the side. Both Callum and Gren looked at her expectantly, taking sips of their drinks almost in sync. _‘How long were you and Rayla making out this morning, for you to come in late?’_

Callum almost choked on his hot chocolate and felt it go into his nose, wincing at the hot liquid nearly coming _out_ of his nose. Gren carefully patted the boy on the back and handed him a napkin. Amaya just wore a smug grin and leaned back, crossing her arms as she waited for her nephew to recover and answer her question.

_‘C’mon, ‘Maya. Leave the poor kid, he is your nephew_ — _’_

_‘Oh come_ on _, Gren. He is an apprentice, just because he’s my nephew doesn’t mean he’s gonna get special treatment,’_ Amaya interrupted Gren, who sighed and shrugged. 

“I… uh… We might have kinda lost track of time a bit…” Callum stammered, his face flustered which he tried, but failed to hide. 

Amaya glanced at Gren, for him to interpret what her nephew had muttered. She hadn’t been able to read Callum’s lips as he had avoided looking at her while he spoke. But when Gren signed it for her, she laughed heartily and leaned over to playfully ruffle the apprentice’s brown hair. 

_‘Glad you two are still happy together, kid. You should invite her to come by the shop sometime, been a while since I’ve seen her.’_

They all had finished their drinks, their pastries and returned to work. Callum was sketching, working on different styles, while Gren was out back doing some administrative work. Amaya had gone back to working on the design for a customer who had come in a week earlier with the idea for their tattoo and had their appointment planned in for next week.

As she felt a light tap on her shoulder, she looked up to find Callum standing next to her. She raised an eyebrow at him, wordlessly asking him what he needed. 

_‘Is it okay if I quickly use the restroom?’_ She rolled her eyes, but with a playful grin as she nodded.

_‘No need to ask permission, Cal. Just make it quick.’_ He nodded and walked to the back in a fast pace. Amaya huffed, the grin still on her lips as she picked her pencil back up and continued on the tattoo design. 

The door opened, sounding the little bell above it, then again as the door was closed again. Heels clicked onto the wooden floor as the woman walked towards the counter, she saw someone at one of the desks, their back towards the counter.

“Hello?” She waited, but there was no response, the person didn’t even turn around. “Excuse me?” she tried again, but there was no response. She scoffed and raised her voice as she called out again, wondering if the person was wearing headphones. 

Amaya looked up as she saw Gren appear in the doorway, seemingly in a hurry. She raised an eyebrow as she wondered what his deal was. 

“I am so sorry, ma’am!” Gren apologized to the customer and bowed his head. “My colleague is deaf, I promise she isn’t being rude. Apologies.” As he looked at the elf again, he saw her stare past him. 

Amaya had gotten up as she figured there was a customer, causing Gren to rush past her just moments before. She turned around, ready to apologize for not noticing them when her eyes took in the customer and her body simply froze. 

The tall elf had a dark complexion, red dreadlocks done up in between her horns an a bandana around her head. Golden markings around the eyes with double lines on both sides going down the cheeks, the side of her throat and down the collarbones. Her lips were a deep, dark red, black winged eyeliner on her eyelids, a small ring in one of her nostrils and nearly a dozen in her pointed ears. The flowy dress the woman wore was a deep red with golden accents and reached down to just above her knees. 

Janai saw the woman look her up and down, while doing the same to the brunette. The woman’s hair was such a dark brown, it could be mistaken for black, short and uneven in length. The eyes were somewhat lighter brown, black smudged lines decorating the upper eyelids. There was a pale scar below one of her eyes, countless piercings in her round ears and a black barbell vertically through her bottom lip. Janai could easily tell the woman had a lot more tattoos than she did, arms completely covered, even quite a few on her chest, as far as Janai could see. The brunette was wearing a deep blue racerback tanktop and faded black jeans, the bottoms tucked into a pair of matte black combat boots. 

Amaya smirked as she saw the elf look her up and down, just like she had done with the elf. Amaya wouldn’t even try to deny the woman was attractive, her morning just got a _lot_ more interesting. 

Only just now, Janai realized the ginger had said something to her. “Sorry, what? You said something…” she mumbled and felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment. The redhead chuckled, then kindly repeated himself. 

_‘I’ll gladly help the lady, any way she pleases,’_ Amaya signed with a sly smirk, causing Gren to blush slightly and shake his head.

_‘Of course you will, ‘Maya,’_ he replied and chuckled. “How can we help you?” he asked the customer and offered her a kind smile. 

“Well,” she started and cleared her throat while looking directly at the brunette. “Someone I know recommended your shop, I heard you’re one of the best artists around here.” 

As the woman spoke, Gren interpreted it to Amaya, who grinned proudly. It was always nice to learn their shop was being recommended to others and best of all; bringing in new customers. 

_‘Well, I try my best. What are you looking for? I have time for a walk-in, so you’re in luck.’_

“That’s awesome, I’m thinking of something not too large, but eye-catching. Here’s some references,” Janai said and handed the brunette the sheet of paper with the different designs on it. “I’m Janai, by the way. Pretty new in town, so what’s better than a new tattoo for a new beginning, right?” 

Amaya looked over the different images, they were all pretty similar, both in style as well as design. She handed the sheet of paper to Gren so she could use both her hands to sign.

_‘So, Janai, do you want it to be simplistic? Just linework, or do you want shading as well? Black and white, colors?’_

Janai smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I want to keep it somewhat simple. I thought of just linework, but colors might actually look nice too. Can you draw something and then see what would look good?” Amaya took the paper back from Gren, so he could interpret for her, putting the sheet on her desk. She smiled widely when Gren told her the customer had basically told her to just draw something up. She always got excited whenever someone gave her free reins with designs, those were often the most fun to do.

_‘Sure thing, you can take a seat over there,’_ Amaya pointed at the corner where the couch was, a small coffee table with their portfolios on it in front of the couch. _‘and I will draw something up for you, shouldn’t take too long.’_ She winked at Janai, then looked at Gren with a grin. _‘Please ask the pretty lady what she’d like to drink?’_ Gren chuckled and nodded, then walked off into the back to get the customer the requested water.

Janai had looked through all of the portfolios already and found herself constantly look at the woman, hunched over the desk focused on the drawing. She watched the apprentice watch as Amaya worked on her design, Gren had told her the boy’s name was Callum and happened to be Amaya’s nephew. She had seen some of his drawings and had been impressed with his drawing skills. 

Janai emptied her glass of water and got up, looking around at framed tattoo designs on the walls. There were different styles, both in color and black and white, intricate as well as simplistic designs. 

“Would you like another glass of water, ma’am?” Janai turned around to face Gren and smiled, then shook her head.

“No, I’m good. Thank you. Say, the shop is hers?” The ginger nodded and smiled proudly. “So this is mostly her work, correct?” 

“Yes, most of it is her work. Mine isn’t as good, yet. I’ve only been doing it for a few years,” Gren answered, the empty glass rolling in between his hands. “So you’re new in town, huh? You like it so far?” 

“Yes, I do. Though I’m still getting used to it, the temperatures are quite different, as well as the people—’ 

“Sorry to interrupt,” Callum chimed in, an apologetic look on his face. “Aunt Amaya says the design is done and asks you to come take a look at it.” Janai smiled excitedly and followed the boy to behind the counter where Amaya was. 

_‘How’s this?’_ Amaya held up the design for Janai to see and watched the elf’s expression closely. She was relieved to see an approving smile on the woman’s face. _‘I can still change it, if you need me to.’_

“No, no…” Janai whispered as she admired the design, it was absolutely perfect and better than she had imagined. “It’s perfect, I love it!” 

_‘So where do you want it? And is the size okay or do you want it bigger?’_ She took the paper back from the elf and watched as Janai pointed at where she wanted the tattoo. _‘Close to the heart, huh? It’ll look great, so for colors I was thinking a golden yellow, some orange, blending together.’_

Janai practically beamed, as it was exactly what she had in mind. “Yes, that sounds absolutely perfect.” 

_‘Alright then! I will prep the stencil and call you back in a minute or two. Callum, can you get the ink and the tattoo machine ready for me?’_ Callum nodded with a big grin and asked Gren to make sure he got the correct machine and ink. 

It didn’t take very long until Amaya called her back again and showed her the stencil, which was cut out and applied on the spot Janai had pointed out. She now stood in front of the mirror, inspecting it. As she decided she was satisfied, she turned back to face the brunette with a giddy grin and gave Amaya a thumbs up.

_‘Go ahead and lay down,’_ Amaya instructed and put on a pair of black gloves. She sat down on the saddle stool and nodded at Gren, making clear he could go ahead and inform Janai what she was going to do. Amaya took a paper towel and wrapped it around the top of Janai’s dress, making sure she didn’t touch the elf’s breasts. _‘Here we go, baby!’_ Amaya signed with an excited grin and took the tattoo machine into her hand. 

It had taken her about an hour and a half, when she turned off the machine and put it aside. She wiped the tattoo down and smiled at Janai. _‘Go ahead and take a look._ ’ She watched the elf walk to the large mirror and look at the fresh tattoo. 

Janai’s jaw dropped as she looked at the fresh ink on her chest, representing her kind’s arcanum; the Sun. It wasn’t very large, but it was surely an eye-catcher. She just couldn’t stop looking at it, a big giddy grin decorating her face.

_‘Satisfied?’_ Amaya asked as she walked by, she was happy to see the elf nod excitedly, the dark lips curled up into an enormous smile that bared her teeth. 

“Satisfied doesn’t quite cover it… You did an amazing job, thank you so much!” Janai answered as she walked back to the workstation. 

“She’s just gonna wrap it up for you, I assume you know how to take care of it?” Gren asked and Janai nodded. “I figured as much, considering it isn’t your first one,” he continued and chuckled. 

Amaya winked at Janai as she bent forward, covering the tattoo with clear film and using medical paper tape to hold the film in place. Her fingers brushed lightly over the dark skin as she applied the tape and removed the paper towel from the dress. She wasn’t sure if it had been because of her when she noticed goosebumps formed on the elf’s skin. She snickered, crumpled up the paper towel and tossed it out together with the rest that had to be thrown out.

_‘Gren, can you ask Callum to help you with cleaning up?’_ Amaya signed, causing the ginger to frown.

_‘You don’t need me to interpret for you?’_ he asked, as realisation dawned on him. _‘Oh, yeah, I got you. I’ll be right with you_ ,’ Gren added, then called Callum over to clean up the workstation together.

Janai was patiently waiting by the counter already, wallet in hand. “So, how much do I owe you?” She watched as Amaya wrote down a number on a notepad and nodded, then handed the brunette the amount with a royal tip on top of it. “Don’t even try to argue, you deserve the tip.” This time it was _her_ who winked, causing the brunette’s cheeks to take on a pink shade. 

_‘Here’s my business card, gorgeous. Feel free to stop by any time. Though you should come back in a month or so, just to have me take a look at it.’_ From where he was standing, Gren explained to Janai what Amaya had signed, as Amaya handed her business card to the elf.

“Sure thing, thanks again,” Janai replied and took the business card, her fingers resting onto Amaya’s for longer than necessary. The brunette’s hands were calloused, but not rough and they were pleasantly cool compared to her own very warm hands. “...I should really get going…” Janai muttered, slowly retracting her hand, holding on to the business card.

_‘Have a great day,’_ Amaya signed with a flirtatious grin and waved as Janai turned around once more before walking out the door. 

Amaya looked up as she was bumped into the shoulder, finding Gren next to her with the biggest smirk on his face. She rolled her eyes at him and got up from behind the desk, it had already been time for lunch. 

_‘Alright Gren, what is it?’_ Amaya put her hands on her hips and gave him a semi-stern look. 

_‘You tell me,’_ Gren replied, taking out his lunch and sat down. 

“ _Oh, is it lunch time already?_ ” Callum asked and both Amaya and Gren nodded at him. “Awesome! I’m _starving,_ ” he continued and went to get his own lunch. By the time he returned, Amaya was sitting down as well. _‘So, aunt Amaya…’_ Gren turned to look at Callum and laughed. _‘...What?’_

“We’re wondering the same thing, Callum. Maybe she’ll answer you.” Callum raised his eyebrows, then eyed Amaya who was peeling a banana. As her eyes met those of Callum, then Gren’s, she let out a deep sigh. 

_‘Can’t a woman just eat her lunch in peace?’_ She took a big bite of the banana, then put it down, still half in its peel. _‘Fine. Yes, she was super attractive. Come on, you guys have functioning eyes, don’t you?’_

_‘I do, since I saw how you were eyeing her.’_ Gren nodded in agreement, Callum just grinned smugly.

_‘Meaning you weren’t focused on practising your styles.’_ Callum winced and shrunk down in his chair. 

_‘So you have an eye on her? Hmm?’_ Gren teased and barely missed the playful smack Amaya had intended to give him. 

_‘And what if I do? Hmm?’_ Amaya gave him a smug and challenging look. She turned her head as she saw both Gren and Callum turn theirs towards the door. As she watched Janai walk into the shop again, she didn’t need to look to know her best friend and nephew were looking at her with amused grins. It had only been a few hours since Janai had left, causing Amaya to wonder if the elf had left anything behind.

“Oh, am I interrupting your lunch-break?” Janai asked with a worried look on her face, embarrassment written all over her. Gren smiled and waved it off.

“Nah, not at all. Even if you were, I’m pretty sure Amaya still wouldn’t mind.” He gave Amaya the most innocent look he could muster when she glanced at him and he continued to eat his sandwich. 

_‘You can interrupt me_ anytime _, don’t worry about it.’_ Amaya flashed Janai a mischievous smile as she walked over to the counter. _‘What can I do for you?’_ she asked and leaned her underarms onto the counter. She admired the elf’s face as Janai blushed and rubbed her neck while letting out an awkward chuckle. 

“Well, I thought I still had the cream at home… But it turns out I ran out, apparently. Do you happen to sell the cream?” Amaya snickered and nodded.

_‘Well, considering we’re a tattoo shop… We do. You need me to show you how to apply it?’_ As Gren interpreted what she had said to Janai, Amaya saw the blush on Janai’s cheeks intensify. She smirked as she twirled the tube of cream in between her fingers, still waiting for an answer from the elf.

“If you don’t mind…” Janai whispered, feeling her cheeks burn hotter than she dared to admit. 

_‘Come with me_.’ Amaya gestured Janai to follow her to the back and quickly shot a warning look to the boys before she disappeared into the back, Janai following close behind. 

As they got to the sink by the door to the restroom, Amaya opened the cabinet next to the mirror and grabbed the special washing gel and a disposable washcloth. She washed her hands thoroughly and let the water running in order for it to get warm, drying her hands off as it did. Amaya carefully started peeling off the paper tape and the film off of Janai’s tattoo, then wet the washcloth and applied a single drop of the washing gel onto it and gently wiped the fresh tattoo with it. Amaya tried her best to suppress a smirk as she could feel the elf’s rapid heartbeat under her fingertips, her own responding similarly. 

When she had cleaned the tattoo completely, she gently dabbed at it with a dry paper towel until the skin was completely dry. Amaya grabbed the tube of cream, punctured the seal with the cap and put a small drop of cream onto her index finger. With both her index and middle fingers she applied the cream onto the fresh tattoo and gently massaged the skin simultaneously. 

Janai realized that the brunette could probably feel her heart racing in her chest as the calloused fingers massaged her skin. She kept telling herself in her head to just act cool, but knew she was failing miserably at it. As Amaya leaned back, Janai let out a breath which she hadn’t even realized she had been holding in. She nearly flinched when something flashed right in front of her face; Amaya was waving the tube of cream mere inches from her eyes. 

“Oh! Right… Thanks, _again_ …” Janai stumbled and took the tube from the brunette. Their hands lingering against each other again, like they had earlier. 

The smirk on Amaya’s face grew, the corners of her lips curling upwards more and their hands lingered; neither of them dared to move their hand away. She mentally thanked whatever entity out there for bringing this gorgeous elf to her shop today. That’s when she decided to just go for it and take her chances; from her jeans’ back pocket she fished a business card and looked in the cabinet for a pen. Luckily there actually was one, for whatever reason. Amaya flipped the card, pressed it against the tiled wall and wrote her phone number onto it. ‘ _Text me. - Amaya_ ’ she added under the number and handed it to Janai with a wink and a flirtatious smile. 

Janai frowned when Amaya handed her the card and read what the brunette had written down on it. Her chest hummed pleasantly and her heart skipped when her eyes met Amaya’s again, not missing the wink the woman gave her. She swallowed, then smirked at the brunette and winked back. “I will.” She gathered all her guts and leaned forward, pressed her lips against Amaya’s cheek and walked off; back to the shop and out the door.

_‘Didn’t she still have to pay for that cream, aunt Amaya?’_ Callum asked as he walked into the back, where Amaya still was; dazed. 

“I think she did,” Gren responded as he joined the two, a smug expression on his face. “It’s right there on her cheek.” Callum raised an eyebrow at first, then chuckled as he noticed the dark red kiss-mark on his aunt’s cheek. 

“I think that elf lady broke her,” Callum said with an amused grin as he waved in front of Amaya’s face. 

“Yep, she’s broken. But let’s get back to work before she auto-repairs,” Gren replied and wrapped his arm around Callum’s shoulders and guided him back to the front. Before he disappeared into the shop, Gren quickly turned his head and winked at Amaya. 

She finally snapped out of her trance, blushing heavily as Gren winked at her playfully. Never before had she wished for the time to go faster so she could close up, because she knew it would be _very_ hard to focus the rest of the day. She was in trouble and they all knew it, which was only proven even more when her heart leapt as she felt her phone buzz in her pocket.

_‘Forgot to pay for the cream… Do you take going on a date as payment? xx Janai’_

Amaya was definitely in deep trouble.

**Author's Note:**

> References for Janai's  
> Dress(shape) :  
> https://postimg.cc/3kgygmmC  
> https://postimg.cc/6ybcksm1
> 
> Hair/dreadlocks:  
> https://postimg.cc/642VwqSj  
> https://postimg.cc/WdPmL278


End file.
